In 2014 The Charlotte Observer started what could be described as an extended brew pub crawl by selling cards that offered customers tastings at between 15 and 18 local breweries across the city. Phyllis Weber, who recently left Charlotte to become advertising director at The Roanoke Times in Virginia, recalls how well the promotion worked.

"This one totally surprised us," she said. The paper made $13,000 in incremental digital revenue, selling about 650 cards at $20 apiece.

As the holiday sales season comes down to the wire, here's a quick way to generate a little more revenue, make readers smile and sell some more papers.

The Bay City Tribune in Texas, which circulates about 4,000 papers twice weekly, filled up two full pages at Halloween with photos of kids in costume, got a major business to sponsor the promotion and made $500. There's no reason the same plan can't work with Santa Claus.

The owner of a media company based in West Virginia is testing his own digital coupon system that is available to local businesses without the need of an app.

"The idea behind it is, well, everybody carries their phones around with them," said Brian Jarvis, president of NCWV Media in Clarksburg, W.Va., and a new board member of SNPA.

Also, Jarvis notes, no one turns off their text message function. His system inserts coupons into the mobile wallets on smartphones and encourages consumers to text businesses to obtain coupons, discounts or a free gift.

Over the summer, the folks at The Palm Beach Post in Florida realized they had "a very large stock" of aging spadea paper that had to be used fairly quickly. Spadea paper, used for premium advertising that folds or wraps around the front section of the newspaper, eventually ages to the point that it's no good. The unused stock of paper became one half of a special package that also featured premium positioning on the paper's website.

When elementary school children in Wilson, N.C., go home with communications folders for their parents, so do ads from The Wilson Times.

"Our advertisers love it, because it's not very often that we can give them an opportunity for something that will last so long. We give them visibility throughout the school year," said Shana Hoover, director of sales and marketing for The Times.

The promotion is in its second school year and was presented at a recent SNPA P2P video conference. The ad space sold out in a week, generating $6,455.

The Oklahoman Media Co. generated hundreds of advertising leads with one new marketing initiative while creating a popular new event from its traditional emphasis on prep sports.

Since March, the company has generated 850 new leads through a LinkedIn B2B marketing system, according to Lawre Everest, creative director for Oklahoman Media. To say it has exceeded expectations is an understatement.

Publishing a recipe card a day made nearly $1,000 a month for The Times Leader in Martins Ferry, Ohio, and readers called if it was left out. The concept was simple: Sell a 2 x 1 ad that runs along the bottom of a 2 x 5 space, and fill the rest of the space with a recipe. The size is small enough to clip and save like a recipe card, with the advertiser as the sponsor.

A Veterans Day section or advertising promotion isn't an original idea, but The Sault News' circulation is 2,700. So getting 400 families to submit photos and basic information about their loved ones who served their country represents an impressive amount of reader engagement.

The Post and Courier of Charleston, S.C., is growing revenue by monetizing newsletters. During last month's P2P video conference call, SNPA members heard how the paper has changed its focus, added or redirected staffing to oversee all newsletters and craft daily news newsletters, and changed its sales approach.

If you missed the call, here's where you can catch up on this GREAT IDEA.

In 2014 The Charlotte Observer started what could be described as an extended brew pub crawl by selling cards that offered customers tastings at between 15 and 18 local breweries across the city. Phyllis Weber, who recently left Charlotte to become advertising director at The Roanoke Times in Virginia, recalls how well the promotion worked.

"This one totally surprised us," she said. The paper made $13,000 in incremental digital revenue, selling about 650 cards at $20 apiece.

As the holiday sales season comes down to the wire, here's a quick way to generate a little more revenue, make readers smile and sell some more papers.

The Bay City Tribune in Texas, which circulates about 4,000 papers twice weekly, filled up two full pages at Halloween with photos of kids in costume, got a major business to sponsor the promotion and made $500. There's no reason the same plan can't work with Santa Claus.